1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed to games and play activities with respect to which game pieces and activity items are made from a box, in certain specific aspects from a single box such as, but not limited to a cereal box or a pizza box; and in certain aspects to flying discs, and to items with them.
2. Description of Related Art
The prior art discloses a wide variety of games and play activities that employ game pieces, game equipment, activity items, and other things used in playing the game or in engaging in the activity. Often such games and activities involve the use of a target and items thrown to, into, or at the target.
The prior art discloses a wide variety of boxes, e.g. those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,702,054; 5,586,716; 6,016,951; 5,833,130; 4,891,482; 5,713,509; and in the prior art cited in these patentsxe2x80x94all of which patents and cited art are incorporated fully herein for all purposes.
The prior art discloses a wide variety of flying discs, flying objects, and toys, e.g. those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,553,570; 5,531,624; and 6,073,588 and in the prior art cited in these patentsxe2x80x94all of which patents and cited art are incorporated fully herein for all purposes.
The present invention discloses, in at least certain embodiments, a play activity set with target apparatus or devices(s) at which at least one object may be directed, at least one object for throwing at the target means, and the target apparatus or device(s) and the at least one object made by separating box material from at least one box. In one aspect, a single box is used for target(s) and throwing object(s); and, in one particular aspec, the box (or boxes) is a pizza box.
The present invention, in certain aspects, discloses boxes for games and activities. The boxes are used as the source material for game pieces, game equipment, activity items, targets, and things used in such games and activities. In certain aspects everything needed for a game or for an activity is made from a box or boxes. In certain aspects, everything needed for such a game or activity is made from a single box. In certain specific aspects the box (or boxes) is a pizza box or a breakfast cereal box.
In one embodiment a first part of a box is separated or removed from the box (severed, cut, punched out, and/or pushed out from perforated, indented or weakened areas) and then folded back and passed through an opening in the box so that the first part projects out from the box. The box is then placed flat with the first part projecting upward or the box is placed on a side with the first part projecting outward. One or more pieces of the box are then cut out from the remainder of the box and an opening is provided through the piece(s) so that it can be thrown in an effort to have the opening receive the first part; i.e., so that the piece ends up on, around, or over the first part encompassing it. In one particular aspect several throwing pieces are cut from the box. In another aspect additional parts like the first part are cut from the box and folded and positioned to provide several projecting parts at which the throwing pieces may be directed. The throwing pieces may have any suitable shape as viewed from above (e.g., but not limited to, square, rectangular, round, oval, triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, irregular, etc.) and the openings through the throwing pieces may also be any suitable shapexe2x80x94either a shape corresponding to the shape of the throwing piece or not. In other aspects, the throwing pieces are made from a single thickness of a box; and in some aspects throwing pieces are made from two or more thicknesses of a box.
In another embodiment, a portion of the box is separated from the box to provide a target opening for items thrown at the box. An object or objects for throwing at the box may be made from the box itself, from another box, or other object(s) may be used. In one aspect a flyer disc as disclosed herein is made from a box and then thrown at the target opening of a box. In another aspect, a plurality of flat discs or objects of non-round shape are made from the box from which the target opening was taken and these discs or objects are then thrown at the target opening. In one aspect, one or more parts of the box are totally or partially separated from the box, folded, and then an end thereof is inserted into one or more openings, slots, slits, or cuts in the box to stabilize the remainder of the box with the target opening. One, two, or more target openings may be provided in a single boxxe2x80x94with multiple openings on one side of a box or with openings on two, three or more sides of a box. In one particular aspect corresponding openings are provided on two sides of a box, e.g., but not limited to, on two sides of a pizza box so that an object can be thrown so that it goes through both openings. In other aspects a box with a target opening is positioned or is laid flat so that thrown objects that pass through the target opening enter the box and remain there. In other aspects, one or more knock-down items, in one embodiment in the general outline shape of bowling pins, are made from a box or boxes and, optionally, an object to throw or roll at them to knock them down is also made from the same box or boxes or from another box. By using multiple discs separated from a box or boxes and then meshed together using slots in each disc, a generally spherical object is made that will roll when thrown along a floor or other surface. In another aspect a cubical throwing item (or or items) is made from a box or boxes.
In one particular aspect a set of dominoes or checkers is printed on the box or a paper with a set of dominoes or checkers printed thereon is glued or attached to the box. The dominoes or checkers are then separated from the box to provide a set of dominoes for playing domino games or checkers for playing a checkers game. In one aspect, a checkerboard may be printed on a box or on a sheet of paper glued to the box. Checkers may be played on such a checkerboard that remains on the box or the checkerboard may be separated from the box. A checkerboard may be made on one box and the checkers separated from another box or both may be made from a single box. In a particular aspect of the present invention, game pieces such as dominoes, chess pieces, or checkers are printed on one surface of a part of a box and, optionally, a logo, trademark, tradename, symbol, word(s), motto, or other indicia are printed on a reverse surface so that when the game pieces are separated from the box each has the logo, etc. on one side and the game indicia on the other. For game pieces such as checkers, the logo, etc. may be provided on both sides or on only one side.
The present invention, in certain embodiments discloses a flying disc made from cardboard, plastic or similar material which is sufficiently rigid so that a disc body of the material will be flat or substantially flat in flight. In certain aspects the disc is generally square, rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, quadragonal, hexagonal, septagonal, octagonal, oval, or circular as viewed from above, but it may have any shape which serves as the body for the flying disc. In certain aspects, a portion or portions around the disc periphery are bent down. In one aspect these portions extend continuously completely around the discs perimeter. These portions may be bent down and not be in contact with, not be interconnected or interlocked with adjacent portions; or, alternatively, these portions may contact each other, be taped together, be interconnected, and/or be interlocked with each other.
In one aspect such a disc is made by cutting out or punching out a disc piece of plastic, fiberboard, kraft paper, cardboard, etc. with the desired shape from a larger piece thereof. Slits, weakened areas, grooves, indentations, and/or cuts are then made around the discs perimeter (or this may be done before the disc piece is cut or punched out from the larger piece of material). A portion or portions of the disc (one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, or more) between pairs of slits, etc. are then folded down. Alternatively, weakened or slit lines on top of the disc around its circumference provide a line down from which a part of the disc body can be bent or folded to provide the portion or portions projecting down from the disc body to facilitate its flight. In one particular aspect this produces an intermittent lip around the disc perimeter that facilitates the flight of the disc (as compared to a flat piece of material with no such lip or portions).
In one embodiment two (or more) discs are connected together. In one such multi-disc assembly, two such discs are completely removed from a box or boxes and are then connected face-to-face so that the slits or cuts in the downward projecting edge of one disc are offset from those of the other disc. In another aspect a first disc with the intermittent lip of folded-down portions is connected to and on top of a disc (or discs) with no such portions. In another aspect two discs or other items of similar shape when viewed from above are almost totally separated from a single box and a small part of the box is left between the two items. One item is then folded over the other using the small part as a connector and as a hinge portion. In one aspect of such a folded-over compound disc (or other shaped item), one of the discs is smaller than the other and a tab in the smaller disc is insertable into an opening in the larger disc to join them together.
In another embodiment a secondary piece of material, is connected face-to-face, on top of or beneath, a disc as described above. Such a secondary piece adds weight to the disc and facilitates its flight with the lip of the disc on the lower side of the disc in flight. Alternatively any weight or weights may be connected to a disc to facilitate its flight.
In one particular embodiment the cardboard (or paper, paperboard, etc.) used to produce a disc according to the present invention is cut out of or separated from a box, as may be the secondary piece, or multiple discs of a multi-disc disc.
The disc and/or secondary piece may be cut from any suitable cardboard, foam board, thick paper, plastic, rigid material, or box or container made from these materials. In a particular aspect the disc and/or secondary piece are cut out or punched out from a pizza box. The outline of the disc body and/or of the secondary piece (and/or of multiple discs) may be printed on the box. Lines may be included to indicate where the material is to be torn or cut to form the portions of the lip that are folded down. Depending on the size of the box, and the desired disc size, multiple discs and secondary pieces may be cut from a single box. Alternatively, a box may be perforated or otherwise cut or weakened along the outlines of the disc(s) and/or secondary pieces to ease separation of them from the box. In certain aspects one or more portions of a secondary piece or of a second disc are formed, sized and configured to engage, interlock with, or fit into corresponding slits, openings, engagement recesses, or locking cutouts on a primary disc body. Such engagement etc. apparatus may be used with or without other ways to fasten a secondary piece or additional disc to a primary disc [including, but not limited to, with glue, adhesive, staple(s), brad(s), screw(s), releasably cooperating hook/loop fastener material [e.g. but not limited to Velcro ((trademark)) material; tape; and/or string or thread]. Similarly a weight or weights may be connected to a primary disc according to the present invention with or without a secondary piece.
For use in the dark any disc, weight, or secondary piece may have one or more pieces of xe2x80x9cglow in the darkxe2x80x9d material or reflective material on it and/or one or more light sticks and/or battery or solar powered lights (such items and materials referred to collectively herein as xe2x80x9clight materialxe2x80x9d).
In one aspect a box from which a disc or secondary piece is taken may be used as a target container at which a disc or discs are thrown. In one particular embodiment, a box or part of a box from which a disc is taken is used as a target. In one aspect, the newly-created opening (from which the disc was removed) is used as a target. In one aspect one or more additional discs is cut out or punched out from a first disc so that a smaller disc (or discs) is created that can more easily fly through the box opening corresponding to the first disc.
In one particular aspect of the present invention a dual disc includes a first disc with a disc body with a peripheral lip and a groove or recess in the lip. This groove or recess is configured and sized for releasable receipt therein of the lip of a second disc. In one aspect such a dual disc combination is used as a container for an object or objects in a space between the two discs.
In another embodiment a primary disc has within it a secondary disc that can be cut out, punched out, or otherwise separated from the primary disc. The secondary disc has one, two, three, four or more tertiary discs separable from the secondary disc. In a particular aspect the primary disc""s opening from which the secondary disc was removed is used as a target at which the tertiary discs are thrown. In another particular aspect the secondary disc is used as a base for the primary disc to present a stand-up target for the secondary disc (or vice versa, primary disc as base, secondary disc as target). Either a disc opening may be used as a target or a disc may be a xe2x80x9cknock-downxe2x80x9d target with the object to knock over a disc that is standing up. Any suitable connection of the two discs (primary and secondary) may be used, including, but not limited to, the ways described above for connecting or attaching a secondary piece to a primary disc. In one aspect a secondary disc has a slit and a portion of a primary disc is inserted into the slit (or vice versa) so that the secondary disc serves as a base for the primary disc to hold the primary disc upright. Alternatively the primary disc and secondary disc (or three, four or more discs) are upright and lean against each other to present a target, target opening, and/or knock-down target.
What follows are some of, but not all, the objects of this invention. In addition to the specific objects stated below for at least certain preferred embodiments of the invention, other objects and purposes will be readily apparent to one of skill in this art who has the benefit of this invention""s teachings and disclosures. It is, therefore, an object of at least certain preferred embodiments of the present invention to provide:
New, useful, unique, efficient, nonobvious games and play activities in which game pieces, activity objects, and/or targets and/or knock-down items etc. are made from a single box or several boxes;
Such a game or activity in which an extending part of a box is made from the box so that it projects therefrom to provide a target at which objects are thrown that have an opening that can encompass the extending part, and such objects that are also made from the box or boxes;
Such a game or activity in which one or more target openings are made in a box and then objects are thrown in an effort to have them pass through a target opening, and such games or activities in which the thrown objects are themselves made from the box or boxes;
Such a game or activity in which one or more gameboards and/or one or more game pieces are made from a box or boxes;
Such games or activities in which the box or boxes used are pizza boxes, and, in one aspect, a single pizza box is used to produce a target and one or more throwing objects.
New, useful, unique, efficient, nonobvious flying discs;
Such flying discs which include a primary disc and/or a secondary piece;
Such flying discs with two flat parts connected together or such flying discs in which one or more portions thereof are folded or bent down from a main disc body; and, in one particular aspect, such flying discs in which every other portion is folded down;
Such discs taken from a larger piece of material;
Two or more such discs taken from a larger piece of material;
One such disc serving as a support or base for another; and/or
One such disc serving as a target.
Certain embodiments of this invention are not limited to any particular individual feature disclosed here, but include combinations of them distinguished from the prior art in their structures and functions. Features of the invention have been broadly described so that the detailed descriptions that follow may be better understood, and in order that the contributions of this invention to the arts may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional aspects of the invention described below and which may be included in the subject matter of the claims to this invention. Those skilled in the art who have the benefit of this invention, its teachings, and suggestions will appreciate that the conceptions of this disclosure may be used as a creative basis for designing other structures, methods and systems for carrying out and practicing the present invention. The claims of this invention are to be read to include any legally equivalent devices or methods which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.